Adrian G. Marcuse Library Marks Women's History Month

3/10/2011

Books about women in contemporary culture featured

Below are some of the books on display in LIM College's Adrian G. Marcuse Library in honor of Women's History Month.

When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present, Gail Collins Call number: 305.409 COL
New York Times columnist Collins' latest book showcases the incredible journey of American women over the past 50 years. Collins first explores an era when women were not allowed to sit on juries in some states; she then follows the progress of the women's movement and the civil rights movement as the passion for equality caught fire across the country. ...This is not only a fascinating record of how far women have come, it is also a missive to a new generation of women, reminding them to keep the faith.—Book List

Cinderella Ate My Daughter, Peggy Orenstein Call number: 305.23082
In this witty, well-documented study…Orenstein looks at the way race-based images of idealized female beauty and behavior, themselves the product of aggressive and manipulative marketing campaigns, influence preteen girls. …The author discovered that while girls have more role models than ever before to show them that they can become anything they wish, they are also under much greater pressure from an extraordinarily young age to prove their femininity. Intelligent and richly insightful.—Kirkus Review

Female Chauvinist Pigs, Ariel Levy Call number: 305.4209 LEV
With the rise of such magazines as Maxim and FHM and the popular video series Girls Gone Wild, raunch culture has never been more mainstream. ...Levy takes a hard look at this new pop-culture phenomenon to see how smart, intelligent women buy into sexual stereotypes. ...A piercing look at how women are sabotaging their own attempts to be seen as equals by going about the quest the wrong way, Levy's engrossing book should be required reading for young women.—Book List

Feminism and Pop Culture, Andi Zeisler Call number: 305.42 ZEI
Feminists and popular culture traditionally have had a confrontational relationship, with feminists dismissing popular culture as a tool of patriarchy and popular culture labeling feminists as ugly harridans. Zeisler attempts to bridge the gap between the two, demonstrating both how popular culture shapes the understanding of politics and how it can be used to advance a feminist agenda. ...Zeisler demonstrates that it is possible to be a feminist, take a critical attitude toward the media that surrounds us, and enjoy it with a clear conscience.—Choice

Word: On Being a [Woman] Writer Call number: 809.89 BUR
[A] forthright and invigorating anthology of 25 contemporary women writers... The essays vary in tone from rigorous expositions to poetic meditations to sly satire (Margaret Atwood's self-portrait as a young poet is hilarious), and all address society's attitudes toward women past and present and women's views of themselves.—Book List